


The show must go on

by Trashness



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Circus, Everyone knows he has a ginormous crush but he thinks he's subtle, He looks hot in tights and his leotard, Keith is Weak, Lance might even know, M/M, Trapeze!Lance, circus AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-17
Updated: 2018-01-17
Packaged: 2019-03-06 01:55:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13401000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trashness/pseuds/Trashness
Summary: Keith has been participating in his knife throwing act for several years now, and the circus has gradually become his family and favourite place to be.Unfortunately his mentor and partner can no longer tour for medical reasons, so Keith is desperate to find another willing victim.Anyone but the hot acrobat guy. Please. Anyone but him.





	The show must go on

**Author's Note:**

> Hey this isn't really new haha.
> 
> I wrote this months ago as part of a prompt over on Tumblr, but it was requested that I post it here as well.  
> I figured why not.
> 
> There's art to go with this!  
> http://irrevocably-delicious.tumblr.com/post/169770986998/a-while-ago-i-wrote-a-circus-au-with-all-the

“Oh no,” Hunk blots off the white paint that has spotted his bright orange clown pants. His trailer smells like an odd combination of makeup and fresh bread. 

“There’s no way in hell you’re using me as your sacrifice.” Hunk cries with more determination.

“Aw c’mon Hunk! You’re always being shot out of a cannon or something! How is this more dangerous?” Keith whines. His throwing knives jangle in his back pocket.

“Um, well for one thing…. it’s not a real cannon. It’s one I designed and built so I know _exactly_ how much firepower it has and the risk that’s involved.” He sets down his pants. 

“And like, the whole joke is that I DON’T get shot out! There’s no risk.”

“We also go through our equipment before every show for safety checks.” Pidge chimes in from her dark corner of the trailer. He hair is still sprayed in crazy directions from their last performance, but she’s removed her makeup. There are still traces of red around her mouth. 

“And Hunk even reduced the sugar content in his pies because they were stinging his eyes a bit too much.”

Hunk nods to confirm. Keith rolls his eyes and groans.

“I’m desperate here guys. I really need a new partner. Thace just called and said the doctors won’t sign off on him touring.” 

 

Keith had gotten the call just hours before. Thace had been his mentor and partner for all of their tours, but in recent years, he had taken more of a back seat. He would participate less in the throwing aspect, and now just enjoyed spinning on boards blindfolded while Keith threw knives at him. Only the circus performers could tell that he was secretly napping under that blindfold. 

 

But Thace was getting older. He would joke that Keith should find some “pretty young thing” to replace him, but Keith enjoyed working on their act together. He liked the close bond and camaraderie that they shared and thought he could get at least three more tours out of him. Unfortunately, Thace’s heart had other plans. 

 

“Pidge?” Keith asks. She snorts.

“Honestly, it’s not very impressive if you miss me. I’m such a small target. Not very entertaining.”

“That’s true.” Keith sighs. She definitely had a point.

“You could try Lance?” She asks. On the outside it’s an innocent enough question. Lance was their star trapeze and high wire artist. He was athletic, looked good in a leotard, and he was used to the adrenaline and risk that comes from circus work. Logically he’d be a perfect fit.

 

But Keith sees that knowing smirk on Pidge’s lips. He walks out of their trailer with a huff.

“Forget it.”

 

“So how about it, Shiro?” Keith bats his eyelashes. He hangs off of the bars of the lion’s cage to get a better look at his friend inside. Shiro pats their ancient, large, male lion as he sets down his food for him. The old boy is almost blind now and Shiro is comfortable enough to spend longer periods with him in his cage. Despite being a shadow of the young, powerful, lion he used to be, Keith still refuses to enter his cage. He gives the lionesses an even wider birth.

“AH, I don’t think I can.” Shiro sighs. He gives the lion a strong pat and then wanders over to Keith at the bars. 

“Your act is right before mine, and that’s when I’m rallying all the cats up. I can’t really leave that job to someone else.” He gives a sad smile. It’s true that the lions were almost entirely Shiro’s responsibility. Allura would feed them occasionally, but that was it. 

Keith nods.

“Yeah, I understand.”

“I’m sorry man. You try the clown squad?”

“Yeah,” Keith slumps against the bars in defeat. Shiro chuckles at his dramatics. He smirks with an alternative.

“You know…. Lance….”

“Never happening.”

 

“Hey, Allura….”

“Forget it, Keith.” Allura laughs. She hangs her sequinned jacket on the back of her trailer door. There’s a sheen of sweat to her skin, but otherwise not a hair is out of place. 

“But you’d be perfect! You’d look beautiful in a sparkly leotard. Do you like feathers?” Keith spits out quickly. “You’d be my beautiful assistant and…”

“Keith….” Allura sighs. She takes her hair out of her tight bun and it cascades down her body. She loosens the tie around her neck. 

“You know I don’t have time to participate in your act. As the ringmaster it’s my duty to keep up the flow of the entire performance, and help pull the audience’s attention as equipment is brought on stage.” She explains like she’s done so many times.

 

“But you participate in Hunk and Pidge’s act!” Keith exclaims. 

“They’re clowns. Everyone participates whether they like it or not.” She laughs. Keith sits at her dressing room table and pouts, not noticing that his elbow is now stained with make up. He rests his head on his hand and looks in the mirror. Allura’s smile reflects down on him. She places a gentle hand on his shoulder, her manicured nails grazing against Keith’s sweaty t-shirt. 

“Lance is in the big tent.”

“I’m not…”

“I already told him you were coming.”

Keith falls forward and thumps his head on the dressing table with a groan. 

 

Keith finds Lance dangling on one of the trapeze swings in the big tent. It’s strangely cold when it’s not filled with hundreds of eager audience members or food vendors spewing buttery smells into the air. Lance is out of his full, blue leotard, the one that sparkles in the light, and is down to just his tights and a pair of navy shorts. He hangs lazily above the ground with his ankles wrapped around the ropes. His arms stretch downwards. He looks oddly serene when he’s upside down.

 

“I was waiting.” Lance notices Keith pad in. He rights himself and does a flip as he jumps off. He lands in a gymnasts pose.

“Show off.” Keith teases.

“Just for you.” Lance smirks. He wipes his chalked up hands on his bare chest. Keith averts his eyes.

“So, Allura said you needed to ask me something?”

“She didn’t tell you?” Keith’s eyes narrow. Lance shakes his head.

“Oh uh…” Keith suddenly feels a flutter of nerves. Lance not knowing anything causes his anxiety to spike.

 

“Thace called me and uh… He says the doctors are advising him not to tour with us anymore.” He explains. He speaks quietly and it’s almost lost in such a large space. Lance creeps closer.

“Oh shit. Is he ok?” His concern is genuine. “Are you ok? You’re not dropping out are…?”

“No, no no no!” Keith answers quickly. He holds his hands up and moves them frantically. 

“Thace is fine. Just had a bit of a scare with his heart. He’s had surgery and recovering, but needs to rest.”

“So no more late night drunken karaoke sessions with Coran.” Lance shakes his head and chuckles. Keith laughs with him. They had both been woken up by Thace’s rendition of _I’ve got you, babe_ at three am more than once. 

“No, sadly not.” Keith sighs. He starts to wring his hands and shuffles a bit on the spot. Lance eyes the way he tucks his hair behind his ear once, twice, three times.

“But unfortunately that means I need a new partner, and so I was wondering if you…”

“Sure thing.”

“… would you be my…” Keith stops. He looks up and blinks at Lance, his mouth slightly agape. Had he misheard?

 

“Wait, what?”

“I said ‘sure thing’. You were asking me to be your new victim, right?” Lance laughs and crosses his arms over his chest. Keith still stares. Did Lance just agree? That easily?

“Wha… are you sure?!” He gasps.

“Yeah, it’s fine.” Lance shrugs. Keith’s eyebrows knit together. 

“You’ve seen my act, right?” He smirks. “You… lying on a board. Me… throwing knives at you. Sometimes you’re spinning. Sometimes I’m blindfolded. Sometimes the knives are _also_ on fire?!”

“Yes! Yes, Keith, jeez.” Lance pushes past the shorter boy and begins to walk towards the knife throwing equipment. “I’ve seen your act a million times, that’s why I’m agreeing to it. You never miss.” He smiles and leans on the spinning board.

“You gonna show me what you got or not?”

 

Keith sighs. This was really happening. Butterflies begin to pound harder against his ribcage, but he tries to keep up his usual confidence.

“I don’t want you chickening out.” He sings. Lance scoffs. He moves to stand in front of the board.

“Just tell me what to do. I work two stories higher than everyone else and frequently throw myself off of it. Your knives hardly scare me.” His grin is sharp and taunting. Keith rises to it. He places his palm on Lance’s chest and backs him up until he hits the board.

 

“Arms up.” He orders. Lance dutifully raises and spreads his arms. Keith gets to work strapping him in. Lance’s wrists are smaller than Thace’s and the cuffs need to be significantly tightened. Keith pulls on them harshly. Lance hisses.

“Usually pretty guys have to buy me a drink before I let them tie me up.” He murmurs next to Keith’s ear. 

“Shut it.” Keith pulls back quickly, but Lance doesn’t miss the blush that has spread across his cheeks. He smiles to himself.

 

Keith finishes strapping Lance’s legs and steps back.

_1, 2, 3, 4, 5,_ … He counts out 10 paces. He wants to wipe that smug grin off of Lance’s face.

“Aw, you’re not even gonna spin me yet?” He teases.

“I need to warm up.” Keith replies.

“I think you’re just enjoying this view a bit too…”

SHING!

 

A knife flies through the air and buries itself deep in the wood just at the base of Lance’s crotch. He lets out a squawk.

“Jesus, Keith! Watch the goods!”

“Not like you use them.”

That shuts Lance up for a while. His expression is sour as Keith lets a few more knives fly. They all land close to Lance’s body, but none make direct contact. Keith has to admit that he is impressed with how Lance never flinches. He barely even blinks.

 

“Are you ok if I spin you now?” Keith gently asks.

“Go for it.” 

He jogs forwards and with a grunt, spins the heavy board Lance is strapped to. It moves easily enough once it gets going.

“Oh this is awful.” Lance is used to viewing the world from upside down, but not in such a… circular motion.

“Sorry. You can close your eyes if it’s too much, but I understand if you’d want to watch me.” Keith offers. Lance hums and closes his eyes. 

“I don’t need to watch you. Go ahead.”

 

Again Keith is taken aback at how blasé Lance is being towards all this. He examines Lance’s face for any signs of fear or hesitation, but finds none. He counts out his paces again and begins to throw. Lance’s eyebrows wrinkle a bit, but Keith suspects that’s more from the uncomfortable feeling of spinning than from the fact that he’s having lethal weapons thrown at his body.

 

Keith runs out of knives and walks forwards. He stops Lance when he’s upright.

“Alright. That’s it.” He smiles. Lance looks puzzled.

“Don’t you want to practice your blindfold bit?” He asks. Keith scoffs.

“Ah no, I won’t make you go through that. It’s pretty nerve wracking.” His fingers start to move to Lance’s wrist. “We can work up to that.”

“No hey, c’mon.” Lance protests. “Don’t stop for my sake, I’m fine. We should practice.”

Keith’s hands stop. He leans on the board and looks at Lance skeptically. 

 

“Are you sure?” He squints and leans into Lance’s space. Lance smiles.

“Yeah.” He breathes. “I trust you.”

 

For the second time, Keith feels himself blush. He licks his lips and averts his gaze.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Lance’s eyes are half lidded and he wears a crooked smile. “I’ve been watching you do this for years. Not a doubt in my mind.”

Keith lets out a breathy laugh.

“Ok.”

 

He spins Lance again. Counts his paces. Pulls his blindfold out of his pocket. He takes a deep, slow breath.

 

_Millions of times, millions of times, I’ve done this millions of times_. He repeats to himself. So why is his pulse thudding so hard.

 

With a gulp, he holds his breath and lets the first knife fly. He waits.

 

“You dead?”

“I’m fine!” Lance laughs. “Keep going, you’ll definitely know if you hit me. I trust you, remember?”

“Yeah.” Keith breathes. He smiles and pulls out his next knife.

 

He hears each one impact the board, and so far Lance has been silent. A good sign.

“Last one!” Keith announces. His nerves have started to calm finally. He rubs his thumb over the cool metal of the blade, feeling it’s weight in his palm. With a calculated flick of his wrist, he sends it spiralling into the air. 

 

“AH!” Lance cries.

“Lance!”

Lance loudly snorts and begins to laugh loudly. Keith rips off his blindfold.

“Joking! Joking!”

“You fucking asshole!” Keith glares. He marches across the sawdust. His murderous expression does little to stop Lance’s giggling.

 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” But Lance hardly seems remorseful with happy tears in his eyes. Keith places his hands on either side of his head and leans in.

“Are you happy with yourself?” If looks could kill..

“Immensely” Lance purrs. “Now let me out of this thing so I can shower.” He starts to wriggle and pull at his cuffs. Keith steps closer.

“I oughta leave you here as punishment.” He says through gritted teeth.

“Is that what you’re into?” Lance breathes. Keith feels it on his face and it sends a jolt straight to his stomach. His eyes narrow and for once he doesn’t nervously look away. Lance laughs.

 

“Hey that reminds me, what kind of outfit did you want me to wear?” He asks. Keith chuckles and leans back a bit. He makes it obvious how his gaze trails up and down Lance’s body.

“I kind of like this get up.” He smirks. He starts to bend down to undo the cuffs holding Lance’s legs. 

“The tights and shorts?” Lance laughs.

“It’s a real look.” Keith smiles.

“Mmmm,” Lance hums. “I could always wear _just_ the shorts. Or maybe some little speedo thing.” He seductively wiggles his hips. Keith laughs louder. That makes Lance smile even wider.

 

“I can bedazzle them if you like. Put your name across my junk.” He waggles his eyebrows. Keith moves closer and unbuckles one wrist cuff. As he undoes the second he leans in extra close. His lips feather across Lance’s ear. 

“I’d rather have my name across your ass.” He purrs. 

 

Lance falls to his feet as his last cuff is undone. He wears a blush that reaches all the way down to his collar bones. Keith appreciates the rich colour and winks over his shoulder as he begins to walk back to his trailer.

 

“Ohooooho,” Lance’s knees are weak. His smile is wide and his eyes light up with interest. 

“Keith…. baby… what are you doing to me? You can’t just walk away.” He holds his heart like he’s been wounded, but Keith continues his march.

 

_This should be an interesting tour._ It takes every ounce of Keith’s will not to skip out of the tent.

 

**Author's Note:**

> This really is just a short one-shot. I may pick it up again in the future, but sorry if it feels like I've left you hanging.


End file.
